Agitating device



May 22, 1923. T. J. PUTNAM AGITATING DEVICE Filed Jan. 9. 1920 ac {HEW-s .Imewior fiacy Jackson Pain/am.

Patented May 22, 1923.

PATENT. OFFICE.

TRACY JACKSON PUTNAM, OF BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS.

AGITATING DEVICE.

Application filed January 9, 1920. Serial No. 350,346.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, TRACY JACKSON PU'r- NAM, a citizen of the United States of America, and a resident of Boston, in the county of Suffolk and State of Massachusetts, have invented an Improvement in;

Agit-ating Devices, of which the following description, in connect-ion with the accompanying drawings, is a specification, like m characters on the drawings representing like parts.

The present invention relates to mechanical agitators. The invention and its aims and objects will be best understood from the following description taken in connection with the accompanying drawings of one embodiment of the invention selected for purposes of illustration, it being understood that the invention in its true scope is definitely set forth by the appended claims.

In the drawings:

Fig. 1 is a top plan view of one illustrative embodiment of the invention;

Fig. 2 is a front elevation of the embodiment of the invention shown in Fig. 1, with the vibrator casing in section; and

Fig. 3 shows a portion of a hemocytometer pipette, mainly in section.

I will now describe one convenient embodiment of my invention in its application to a particular'use, namely, the shaking oii hemocytonoeter pipettes, in order to eftect a uniform suspension of the blood corpuscles in the anti-coagulating or diluting fluid in which they are contained within the pipette, and thus facilitate the counting of the cells under the microscope. It ,is to beunderstood, however, that my invention is not limited to this particular use, but that it is equally applicable for shaking any rela tively small vessel in order to agitate its contents for any purpose.

In carrying out iny invention it provide suitable -means for holding the vessel, the contents of which are to gether with means for imparting to said holder and vessel the movement necessary to agitate the contents of the latter. This latter means may be of any suitable construction and mode of operation, but I preferably use for this purpose means operable by electrical energy, such electrical means being easily operated and electrical energy being readily available.

be agitated, to-

Herein said electrical means'may conveniently consist of an ordinary electrical vibrator comprising an electro-ma-gnet 2 mounted upon a plate 4, and an armature 6 disposed in suitable relation to the cores 8, 8 of the magnet, said armature being fixedly secured in any suitable manner at one end to a metallic spring member 10 intermediate the two ends of the latter. The spring member 10 is fixedly secured in any suitable manner to a fixed metallic member 12, the free end of said spring member constituting an electrical contact 13, adapted to cooperate with a second contact i l.

Terminals 1-6, 16 may be connected on the one hand by a circuit containing a switch, not shown, with any suitable source of electric current, and on the other hand by wires with the vibrator apparatus described, the

connections with the latter being such that when the switch is closed a current from 4 said source of electrical energy, not shown, will pass through the coils 28,28 of the electro-magnet and throughthe contacts 13, ll thus energizing the magnet and drawing the armature toward the latter. in this operation the spring contact 13 will be removed from contact with the contact i l, thus breaking the circuit and deenergiaing the magnet, so that the. armature will be moved in the opposite direction by spring 10. The contact 13 thus again contacts with the contact 14; and the circuit being thus again closed the magnets will. be re-energized and will again attract the armature 6. So long as the switch is kept closed, vibratory movement will thus be imparted to the armature '6.

The vessel-holding means is herein secured to the free end of the armature "5, preferably by means of an arm 30, secured to the latter. Said holding means may be of any suitable construction. That best' suited to the vessel the contents of which are to be agitated, may be used. For holding a pipette, I have found it convenient to use a clamp, rigidly secured to the free end of the arm 30. Said clamp may be of any suitable construction but herein comprises two members 32, 32 pivotally connected intermediate their two ends at 34; and havin their clamping ends normally maintaine closed by a coiled spring 36 coiled about the pivotal connection 34 and bearing with its ends against the inner surfaces of the two members 32, 32 respectively, on the opposite side of the fpivot 34 from that of the clamping ends 0 the clampingmembers. By pressing the free ends o the clamping members together the clamping ends of said clamp may be readily opened to lntroduce or remove the pipette 20 from the clamp, and when said free ends are released the clamp will firmly hold the pipette 20, as shown in Fig. 1. v

It will be readily seen that *whenthe circuit is closed by the switch, the vibratory movement imparted to armature will be imparted to the clamp and thus to the pipette or other vessel held thereby, whereby the contents of the pipette or other vessel will be agitated.

Preferably the arrangement should be such that when in position in the holder, the longer axis of the chamber in which the material to be agitated is contained shall be either at right angles to the radius of the arc of vibration leading to the point where the vessel is held by the clamp or inclined to said radius, in order to secure a more thorough agitation throughout the entire mass of the contents of the vessel. Where the vessel is held at an angle to the radius of the arc of vibration, t e movement imparted to the vessel is peculiarly effective as it produces a circulascrews by which it may to any suitable support.

tory motion of the liquid in the chamber. This movement resembles very closely that obtained in agitating the Vessel by hand. Where the device is used for mixing liquids or other materials a thorough mixture will thus be obtained. This is more particularly important where the vessel used is a hemocytometerpipette or similar vessel, wherein a head 38 or other suitable tumbling agitator body loose in the ampulla 40 of the pipette or chamber of the vessel is used to aid the operation. If the longer axis of the ampulla of the pi ette is not inclined to said radius or at rig t angles thereto, the bead 38 tends to move only around the smallest circumference of the ampulla or chamber, thus leaving the ends unstirred.

The magnet and armature are preferably contained within a casing 42 removably secured'in any suitable manner to the plate 4 to which the magnet is firmly secured. The apparatus should be firmly held in place dur ing 0 eration, and to this end the plate 4 may e provided with cars 44 to receive be securely fastened The arm 30' may conveniently be curved substantially as shown to renderthe device more compact, but this is not essential. In the o ratlon of counting the red cells of the bloo the filled pipette should be agitated for approximately four or five minutes, a length of time which few technicians are willing to spend in shaking by hand. It will be noted that b positioning the pipette or other vessel as described, the movement imparted to the pipette or vessel by my mechanical a itator is tactically the same as that whic would be imparted to the vessel were the operation performed by hand. This results in a uniform suspension of the corpuscles, which eliminates the greatest common source of error in the whole operation, as well as facilitating the actual counting of the cells under "the microscope. The saving of time and labor to the technician is also considerable.

While herein shown in its application to the agitation of hemocytometer' pipettes, it will be obvious that my invention 18 useful wherever it is desirable to produce agitation for practically any purpose. Thus it may be used for preparing bacterial suspensions, in standardizing bacterines, f'or shaking specimens of sputa pre aratory to examination, and for other simi ar urposes in medicine and the arts in which it is desired to prepare a suspension of fine particles in fluid 1n a vessel by shaking, to mingle two or more fluids or to mix materials, or in short to agitate relatively small vessels for any purose.

P The vessel will preferably be closed in any convenient manner during shaking. In the case of a pipette this may be conveniently done by means of a rubber band 48 extending over both open ends of the pipette, as shown in Fig. 2.

It will be understood that while the invention is herein described as embodied in the details illustrated, it is not to be considered as circumscribed by or limited to these details, or any of them, but that it may be variously modified within the true scope of the invention which is definitely set forth by the claims.

Claims 1 1. Apparatus for agitating liquids comprising, in combination, a vessel adapted to hold liquids, said vessel having unequal axes, means for supporting said vessel with its long axis at an acute angle to the supporting means, and means for causing vibration of the supporting means whereby the contents of the vessel are given a circulatory motion to agitate them thorough] 2. Apparatus to agitate li uids com rising, in combination, a. vessel a apted to old liquids and having a chamber within which is a freel movable tumbling agitator element, sai vessel having unequal axes, means for supporting the vessel with its long axis dispos at an acute angle to the supporting means, and means for causing vibration of the supporting means whereby the agitator element is given a circulatory motion to agitate thoroughly the contents of the vesse 3. 'Apparatus' for agitating liquids comrisin in combination, a vessel adapted to old llquids and having a chamber within which is a freely movable tumbling agitator element, said vessel having unequal axes, an

6 electromagnetically vibrated armature, and

means on one end of the armature for holding the vessel with its long axis disposed at an acute angle to the armature, whereby the arcuate vibrations imparted to the armature cause the agitator element to move with a 10 circulatory motion within the chamber.

In testimony whereof, I have signed my name to this s cification.

TRAC JACKSON PUTNAM. 

